Patient support apparatus communication systems

ABSTRACT

Patient support apparatuses, such as beds, cots, stretchers, recliners, operating tables, and the like include wireless mesh network transceivers that enable them to communicate with each other, and other devices, via mesh networks and/or ad hoc networks. One or more additional wireless transceivers are included, such as WiFi transceivers that enable direct communication with a healthcare facility network, such as an Ethernet. The mesh network communication between patient support apparatuses and other devices is used for any one or more of: extending the communication range of the existing IT infrastructure, efficiently routing data to the healthcare facility network, determining location of the patient support apparatuses and devices, transporting patient data from one patient support to the next as the patient moves, and for other aspects.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/802,855 filed Mar. 14, 2013 by inventors Michael Joseph Hayes et al,and entitled PATIENT SUPPORT APPARATUS COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS, and claimsbenefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/640,138 filedApr. 30, 2012 by applicants Michael Hayes et al. and entitled PATIENTSUPPORT APPARATUS COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS and is a Continuation-in-Part ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/680,699 filed Nov. 19, 2012, nowU.S. Pat. No. 8,674,826, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/356,204 filed Jan. 23, 2012, now U.S. Pat. No.8,319,633, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/573,545 filed Oct. 5, 2009, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,102,254, which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/277,838 filed Mar.29, 2006, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,598,853, which claims benefit of U.S.provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/665,955 filed Mar. 29, 2005and claims benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No.60/734,083 filed Nov. 7, 2005, the complete disclosures of which arehereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to patient support apparatuses, such ascots, stretchers, beds, recliners, operating tables, and otherstructures used to support patients in a healthcare environment. Moreparticularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods bywhich the patient support apparatuses may communicate with each otherand with other structures for one or more purposes.

In a healthcare setting, it is often desirable for information about apatient support apparatus to be forwarded from the patient supportapparatus to a one or more remote locations, such as a nurses' station,where caregivers can review such information without the need tophysically travel to each and every room in the healthcare environment(e.g. a hospital, medical center, long term care facility, or the like).Often such information is forwarded to a healthcare computer network,such as an Ethernet, where one or more servers make the informationavailable for display on any one or more computers or mobile devicesthat are communicatively coupled to the healthcare computer network.

In some instances, the patient support apparatuses forward suchinformation via a direct wireless connection to one or more wirelessaccess points of the healthcare network. Such information may beforwarded via IEEE 802.11 standards. In other situations, suchinformation may be forwarded via a wired connection to the healthcarenetwork. Regardless of the manner in which the patient support apparatusis forwarded to the healthcare network, it is desirable for the patientsupport apparatus information to include data that either identifies thelocation of the patient support apparatus, or that allows acomputer—such as, but not limited to, a server on the network—todetermine the location of the patient support apparatus. Suchinformation allows caregivers to know where in the healthcare facilitythe patient support apparatus is located. In this manner, if any of theinformation requires action on the part of the caregiver, the caregiverknows where to go to take the proper action.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides systems and methods for determining thelocation of patient support apparatuses, as well as systems and methodsthat improve the communications ability of the patient supportapparatuses. Such improved communications may be with a healthcarecomputer network, and/or such improved communications may be between thepatient support apparatuses themselves. In still other embodiments, suchimproved communications may be with medical devices positioned within avicinity of the patient support apparatus. In some embodiments, theimproved communication may expand the communication range of ahealthcare computer network without being dependent upon the healthcarefacility's infrastructure to transmit data from device to device

The improved communication relates to either or both of the content ofthe information communicated, as well as the quality of the receptionand transmission of the electromagnetic signals that carry theinformation. In some embodiments, patient information is communicatedbetween patient support apparatuses during the transfer of a patientfrom one support apparatus to another, thereby allowing the patientinformation to follow the patient in whatever patient support apparatushe or she is positioned on. In other embodiments, the location of apatient support apparatus is determined by triangulation with signalsreceived from other patient support apparatuses. In still otherembodiments, a mesh network is created between patient supportapparatuses for communicating information from the support apparatusesto the healthcare network. Such information includes information aboutthe status of various features of the patient support information,and/or it includes information about medical devices positioned near tothe patient support apparatuses, and/or it includes patient information.

According to one embodiment, a patient support apparatus is providedthat includes a base, a frame supported by the base, a patient supportdeck, and a control system. The patient support deck is supported by theframe and adapted to provide support for a patient. The control systemcontrols a feature of the patient support apparatus and includes firstand second transceivers. The control system is further adapted to beable to wirelessly receive information via the first transceiver from adifferent patient support apparatus about a feature of the differentpatient support apparatus, and the control system is further adapted tobe able to forward the information off of the patient support apparatusvia the second transceiver.

In other aspects, the first transceiver operates in accordance with anInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.15.4standard, and the second transceiver operates in accordance with an IEEE802.11 standard, although other communication protocols may be used forboth transceivers. The transmitted information includes informationidentifying the different patient support apparatus and informationidentifying a location of the different patient support apparatus. Thecontrol system is further adapted to be able to forward the informationoff of the patient support apparatus via the first transceiver, whereinthe control system chooses between the first and second transceivers forforwarding the information off of the patient support apparatus. Such achoice may be made based at least partially upon assessing signalstrengths of the first and second transceivers with potential recipientsof the information.

The control system is adapted to process location information receivedvia the first transceiver from the different patient support apparatusand use the location information in order to generate an estimate of alocation of the patient support apparatus. The estimate of location maybe based at least partially upon a signal strength of the locationinformation received via the first transceiver from the differentpatient support apparatus. Alternatively, the estimate of location maybe based upon location information received via the first transceiverfrom a plurality of different patient support apparatuses.

A memory positioned on the patient support apparatus is adapted to storedata about a patient currently supported on the patient supportapparatus, and the control system is adapted to wirelessly transmit thepatient data to another patient support apparatus when the patient istransferred to the another patient support apparatus. The patientsupport apparatus is able to wirelessly transmit the patient data to theanother patient support apparatus in response to a caregiver manuallymanipulating a control on the patient support apparatus. The patientsupport apparatus also includes a visual display adapted to provide avisual indication when the patient data has been successfullytransmitted to the another patient support apparatus. The control systemis also adapted to clear the patient data from the memory when acaregiver manually manipulates a control on the patient supportapparatus, or when some other indicator provides an indication thatpatient transfer is complete.

The patient support apparatus is also configurable such that the firsttransceiver is able to receive medical device data from a medicaldevice, and the control system can forward the medical device data offof the patient support apparatus via the second transceiver. In otherembodiments, the control system is configured to forward the medicaldevice data off of the patient support apparatus via the firsttransceiver as well, and the control system chooses between the firstand second transceivers for forwarding the information off of thepatient support apparatus. The medical device may include one or more ofthe following: a ventilator, a vital signs monitor, a respirator, aninfusion pump, an IV pump, a temperature sensor, a temperaturemanagement device, and a blood oxygen saturation monitor.

The first transceiver may be configured to transmit network data to amedical device, wherein the network data is received by the patientsupport apparatus from a healthcare network. The patient supportapparatus may receive the network data either from the first or thesecond transceivers.

An RF transceiver may be included on the patient support apparatus thatis adapted to read patient information from an RF identification (ID)tag worn by a patient positioned on the patient support apparatus. Thecontrol system associates the patient information with a uniqueidentifier of the patient support apparatus and forward both the patientinformation and the unique identifier to a healthcare network.

The control system may be configured to choose another patient supportapparatus to which the information is forwarded via the firsttransceiver. This choice may be dynamically updated based at leastpartially upon a current connection strength to the another patientsupport apparatus. Stronger connection strengths are preferred overweaker connection strengths, although other factors may also influencethe choice of the another patient support apparatus.

The first transceiver of the patient support apparatus may further beadapted to wirelessly receive data from a mattress positioned on thepatient support apparatus.

According to another embodiment, a patient support apparatus is providedthat includes a base, a frame, a patient support deck, an electronicmemory, a control system, and a wireless transceiver. The frame issupported by the base, and the patient support deck is supported by theframe. The patient support deck is adapted to provide support for apatient. The control system controls a feature of the patient supportapparatus and stores patient information in the electronic memory abouta patient positioned on the patient support deck. The control systemwirelessly transmits the patient information to another patient supportapparatus via the wireless transceiver when the patient is transferredfrom the patient support apparatus to the another patient supportapparatus.

According to other aspects, the control system may also receive patientinformation via the wireless transceiver when a patient is firsttransferred to the patient support apparatus. Such information is thenbe stored in the electronic memory. The received patient information maycome from another patient support apparatus, or it may come from anothersource, such as, but not limited to, the healthcare computer network. Ifit comes from another source, a second wireless transceiver is includedon the patient support apparatus for receiving the patient information.

A user control is included that controls when the control systemwirelessly transmits the patient information to the another patientsupport apparatus. The patient information includes a patientidentifier, and/or it includes information related to the patient's fallrisk or susceptibility to bed sores. A display may be included on thepatient support apparatus that displays an identifier of the anotherpatient support apparatus to which the patient information is wirelesslytransmitted. A scale system for weighing the patient that is built intothe patient support apparatus may serve as a double checking mechanismsuch that the control system issues an alert if the patient informationis transmitted to the another patient support apparatus without thescale system detecting an exit of the patient off of the patient supportdeck.

According to still another embodiment, a patient support apparatus isprovided that includes a base, a frame, a patient support deck, acontrol system, and a wireless transceiver. The frame is supported onthe base and the patient support deck is supported on the frame. Thepatient support deck provides support for a patient. The control systemis adapted to control a feature of the patient support apparatus. Thewireless transceiver wirelessly receives signals from another patientsupport apparatus and the signals include location information thatindicates a location of that another patient support apparatus within ahealthcare facility. The control system is adapted to use the locationinformation, along with a measurement of a strength of the signals, toestimate a location of the patient support apparatus within thehealthcare facility.

In other aspects, the wireless transceiver receives signals from aplurality of patient support apparatuses and use them, along with ameasurement of their strength, to estimate a location of the patientsupport apparatus within the healthcare facility. The control system isable to transmit the estimate of the location of the patient supportapparatus to a recipient using the wireless transceiver. Alternatively,the control system transmits the estimate of the location of the patientsupport apparatus to a healthcare network using a different wirelesstransceiver positioned on the patient support apparatus.

An electronic memory may be included that stores patient informationabout a patient positioned on the patient support deck, wherein thecontrol system is further adapted to wirelessly transmit the patientinformation from the memory to a different patient support apparatuswhen the patient is transferred from the patient support apparatus tothe different patient support apparatus. The patient support apparatusmay further include a user control that enables a user to control whenthe wireless transceiver transmits the patient information, and adisplay that displays an identifier of the different patient supportapparatus to which the patient information is transmitted. The patientinformation may include a patient identifier.

In still other aspects, the control system may wirelessly receiveinformation via the transceiver from a different patient supportapparatus about a feature of the different patient support apparatus,and the control system thereafter forwards the received information offof the patient support apparatus via the transceiver. The received andforwarded information includes any one or more of the following: a bedexit condition of the different patient support apparatus, a siderailcondition of the different patient support apparatus, a height of thedifferent patient support apparatus, a brake status of the differentpatient support apparatus, and an angular orientation of a component ofthe different patient support apparatus.

The transceiver may also receive medical device data from a medicaldevice, and have the control system forward the medical device data offof the patient support apparatus via the transceiver. Alternatively, thecontrol system is able to forward the medical device data off of thepatient support apparatus via a different transceiver, wherein thecontrol system chooses between the two transceivers for forwarding theinformation off of the patient support apparatus. The medical device maybe any one of a ventilator, a vital signs monitor, a respirator, aninfusion pump, an IV pump, a temperature sensor, and a blood oxygensaturation monitor.

A second wireless transceiver may be included on the patient supportapparatus that is in communication with the control system, wherein thecontrol system is able to forward the estimate of location of thepatient support apparatus off of the patient support apparatus via thesecond wireless transceiver. The control system selects a recipient ofthe estimate of location based upon data received from a plurality ofpotential recipients wherein the data includes information about thecommunication capabilities of the potential recipients with a healthcareEthernet.

According to still another embodiment, a system is provided for locatinga plurality of patient support apparatuses within a healthcare facility.The system includes a plurality of stationary location devices, aplurality of patient support apparatuses in communication with at leastone of the stationary location devices. The plurality of stationarylocation devices are positioned within a healthcare facility at knownlocations and the patient support apparatuses are adapted to determineinformation about their respective locations from communications withthe stationary location devices. The system further includes at leastone patient support apparatus that, when it is not in communication withany of the location devices, is able to determine its location relativeto the plurality of patient support apparatuses by triangulatingwireless signals received from the plurality of patient supportapparatuses.

According to other aspects, the at least one patient support apparatuswirelessly transmits its determined location to a healthcare network.The stationary location devices communicate with the patient supportapparatuses via infrared communications. Such communications may bephysically limited to situations where the patient support apparatus ispositioned within the same room as the stationary location device,and/or positioned within five to ten feet or less of a stationarylocation device.

In any of the embodiments, the patient support apparatus can be a bed, astretcher, a recliner, a cot, or any other type of support structureused in a healthcare setting for providing support to a patient.

These and other features will be more fully understood and appreciatedby reference to the detailed description of the embodiments below andthe accompanying drawings.

Before the embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it isto be understood that the invention is not limited to the details ofoperation or to the details of construction and the arrangement of thecomponents set forth in the following description or illustrated in thedrawings. The invention may be implemented in various other embodimentsand is capable of being practiced or carried out in alternative ways notexpressly disclosed herein. Also, it is to be understood that thephraseology and terminology used herein are for the purpose ofdescription and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of“including” and “comprising” and variations thereof is meant toencompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well asadditional items and equivalents thereof. Further, enumeration may beused in the description of various embodiments. Unless otherwiseexpressly stated, the use of enumeration should not be construed aslimiting the invention to any specific order or number of components.Nor should the use of enumeration be construed as excluding from thescope of the invention any additional steps or components that might becombined with or into the enumerated steps or components.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is side elevational diagram of a patient support apparatus intowhich one or more of the features of the present invention may beincorporated;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of one embodiment of an electrical control systemthat may be used with the patient support apparatus of FIG. 1, or withany of the other patient support embodiments described herein;

FIG. 3 is a plan view diagram of a plurality of patient supportapparatuses according to one embodiment showing a mesh network thatenables the patient support apparatuses to communicate with each otherand/or an access point of a healthcare network;

FIG. 4 is an plan view diagram similar to FIG. 3 showing how the meshnetwork may be used to forward information from patient supportapparatuses outside a range of the access point to one or more otherpatient support apparatuses that are within range of the access point;

FIG. 5 is a plan view diagram of an arbitrary portion of floor plan of ahealthcare facility that illustrates how some patient support apparatusembodiments of the present invention may determine their location usingtriangulation techniques of signals received from other patient supportapparatuses;

FIG. 6 is a plan view diagram of another arbitrary portion of a floorplan of a healthcare facility that illustrates how some patient supportapparatus embodiments of the present invention may transfer patientinformation from one patient support apparatus to another as a patientis transferred from one patient support apparatus to another;

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a plurality of patient support apparatuses thatare configured to receive data from one or more medical devicespositioned within the vicinity of the patient support apparatuses, andto forward said data to a healthcare network access point;

FIG. 8A is a plan view of a mesh network arrangement of a plurality ofpatient support apparatuses wherein a potential data path from a firstpatient support apparatus to an access point of a healthcare network ishighlighted;

FIG. 8B is a plan view of the mesh network of FIG. 8A shown with onepatient support apparatus removed and an alternative data path fortransmitting data from the first patient support apparatus to the accesspoint of the healthcare network;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an alternative electrical control system that maybe used with any of the patient support apparatuses described herein;and

FIG. 10 is a plan view diagram of an arbitrary portion of a floor planof a healthcare facility showing patient support apparatuses that areconfigured to wirelessly receive and transmit medical data, patientdata, and other signals from other patient support apparatuses.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

A patient support apparatus 20 that may incorporate one or more of theaspects of the present invention is shown in FIG. 1. Patient supportapparatus 20 may be a cot, a stretcher, a bed, a recliner, an operatingtable, or any other type of structure used to support a patient in ahealthcare setting. In general, patient support apparatus 20 includes abase 22 having a plurality of wheels 24, a pair of elevation adjustmentmechanisms 26 supported on said base, a frame 28 supported on saidelevation adjustment mechanisms, and a patient support deck 30 supportedon said frame. Patient support apparatus 20 further includes a headboard32 and a footboard 34.

Base 22 includes a brake (not shown) that is adapted to selectively lockand unlock wheels 24 so that, when unlocked, patient support apparatus20 may be wheeled to different locations. Elevation adjustmentmechanisms 26 are adapted to raise and lower frame 28 with respect tobase 22. Elevation adjustment mechanisms 26 may be hydraulic actuators,electric actuators, or any other suitable device for raising andlowering frame 28 with respect to base 22. In some embodiments,elevation adjustment mechanisms 26 are operable independently so thatthe orientation of frame 28 with respect to base 22 can also beadjusted.

Frame 28 provides a structure for supporting patient support deck 30,headboard 32, and footboard 34. Patient support deck 30 provides asurface on which a mattress (not shown), or other soft cushion ispositionable so that a patient may lie and/or sit thereon. Patientsupport deck 30 is made of a plurality of sections, some of which arepivotable about generally horizontal pivot axes. In the embodiment shownin FIG. 1, patient support deck 30 includes a head section 36, a seatsection 38, a thigh section 40, and a foot section 42. Head section 36,which is also sometimes referred to as a Fowler section, is pivotablebetween a generally horizontal orientation (not shown in FIG. 1) and aplurality of raised positions (one of which is shown in FIG. 1). Thighsection 40 and foot section 42 may also be pivotable, such as is shownin FIG. 1.

Although not illustrated in the patient support apparatus 20 depicted inFIG. 1, patient support apparatus will sometimes include a plurality ofsiderails (not shown) coupled to frame 28. If patient support apparatus20 is a bed, there are typically four such siderails, one positioned ata left head end of frame 28, a second positioned at a left foot end offrame 28, a third positioned at a right head end of frame 28, and afourth positioned at a right foot end of frame 28. If patient supportapparatus 20 is a stretcher or a cot, there are typically fewersiderails. In other embodiments, there are no siderails on patientsupport apparatus 20. Regardless of the number of siderails, suchsiderails are movable between a raised position in which they blockingress and egress into and out of patient support apparatus 20, and alowered position in which they are not an obstacle to such ingress andegress.

The construction of any of base 22, elevation adjustment mechanisms 26,frame 28, patient support deck 30, headboard 32, footboard 34, and/orthe siderails may be the same as disclosed in commonly assigned, U.S.Pat. No. 7,690,059 issued to Lemire et al., and entitled HOSPITAL BED,or as disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. publication No.2007/0163045 filed by Becker et al. and entitled PATIENT HANDLING DEVICEINCLUDING LOCAL STATUS INDICATION, ONE-TOUCH FOWLER ANGLE ADJUSTMENT,AND POWER-ON ALARM CONFIGURATION; or as disclosed in the StrykerMaintenance Manual for the Model 3002 S3 MedSurg Bed, available fromStryker Corporation of Kalamazoo, Mich., the disclosures of all three ofthese which are incorporated herein by reference. The construction ofany of base 22, elevation adjustment mechanisms 26, frame 28, patientsupport deck 30, headboard 32, footboard 34 and/or the siderails mayalso take on forms different from what is disclosed in theaforementioned documents.

Patient support apparatus 20 of FIG. 1 further includes a mesh networknode 84 that allows apparatus 20 to form an ad hoc electricalcommunications network with one or more other patient supportapparatuses 20 and/or one or more medical devices. Each of the otherpatient support apparatuses 20 and/or medical devices includes similarelectronics that form a mesh network node that is able to communicatewith node 84, as well as any other nodes 84 on other apparatuses 20 ormedical devices that are within communication range. Each node84—whether positioned on a patient support apparatus 20, a medicaldevice, or something else—is therefore able to not only disseminate datathat originates from the structure to which it is coupled, but also toserve as a relay for forwarding information it receives from other nodesonto to still other nodes, or onto a healthcare network 70 (FIG. 10), aswill be described in greater detail below. Further, because thepositions of patient support apparatus 20, as well as medical devicesand other structures, are likely to change over time, the mesh networkformed by the nodes 84 is dynamic such that the data paths change withchanging locations and/or other conditions.

FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of an electrical control system 44that is incorporated into patient support apparatus 20. Electricalcontrol system 44 includes, in the illustrated embodiment, an internalcommunications network 46. Internal communications network 46 is aController Area Network, although it will be understood by those skilledin the art that it could be another type of network, such as, but notlimited to, a CANOpen network, DeviceNet network, other networks havinga CAN physical and data link layer), a LONWorks network, a LocalInterconnect Network (LIN), a FireWire network, or any other knownnetwork for communicating messages between electronic structures onpatient support apparatus. Internal communications network 46 includes anumber of controllers or internal nodes that are in communication witheach other over the internal network 46. These include a footboardcontroller 48, an actuator/sensor controller 50, a scale systemcontroller 52, a first side rail controller 54, a second side railcontroller 56, a first transceiver controller 58, a second transceivercontroller 60, and a mattress controller 62. Before describing infurther detail the structure and functions of these controllers, itshould be pointed out that patient support apparatus 20 couldalternatively be designed without any internal communications network,but instead have various controllers communicate with each other in anon-networked manner, or by combining the functions of these variouscontrollers into one controller that handles all of these tasks, or instill other manners that do not utilize any sort of communicationsnetwork on the patient support apparatus 20.

Each controller that communicates over internal communications network46 includes one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, fieldprogrammable gate arrays, systems on a chip, volatile or nonvolatilememory, discrete circuitry, and/or other hardware, software, or firmwarethat is capable of carrying out the functions described herein, as wouldbe known to one of ordinary skill in the art.

In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the electrical control system 44 of patientsupport apparatus 20 includes a first transceiver 64 that iselectrically and communicatively coupled to a first transceivercontroller 58, as well as a second transceiver 66 that is electricallyand communicatively coupled to second transceiver controller 60. It willbe understood by those skilled in the art that the use of the terms“first transceiver” and “second transceiver” herein has been done forcommunicative convenience, and that in no way do the “first” and“second” labels connote any significance to, or ranking of, therespective transceivers, nor are they intended to suggest a limit to thenumber of transceivers that may be present on a given patient supportapparatus 20.

First transceiver controller 58 is adapted to process messages that arecommunicated on electrical communications network 46 that are intendedfor first transceiver controller 58. Such messages will typically,although not exclusively, include messages containing data that is meantto be transmitted off of patient support apparatus 20 via firsttransceiver 64. Similarly, second transceiver controller 60 is adaptedto process messages that are communicated on electrical communicationsnetwork 46 that are intended for second transceiver controller 60. Suchmessages will typically, although not exclusively, include messagescontaining data that is meant to be transmitted off of patient supportapparatus 20 via second transceiver 66. First and second transceivercontrollers 58 and 60 are further adapted to process messages receivedby first and second transceivers 64 and 66, respectively, and, whereapplicable, forward the content of those messages onto internalcommunications network 46 for sharing with one or more of the variouscontrollers on network 46.

Together, first transceiver 64 and first transceiver controller 58 formmesh network node 84. Transceiver 64 therefore receives messages and/orsignals from other transceivers that are meant to be forwarded off ofpatient support apparatus 20, rather than consumed by patient supportapparatus 20. Controller 58 processes the received messages sufficientlyto determine whether the messages are for internal consumption orwhether they are to be relayed onto another recipient. Messages that areto be relayed are temporarily stored in memory that is accessible tocontroller 58 until such messages have been successfully forwarded ontoanother recipient. Messages that are to be consumed by patient supportapparatus 20 are processed by controller 58 and directly delivered tothe appropriate device on patient support apparatus 20 by hardwire orother direct connection, or their content is distributed via internalcommunications network 46 for use by one or more of the controllers onnetwork 46.

In one embodiment of patient support apparatus 20, first and secondtransceivers 64 and 66 are different types of transceivers. That is,each transceiver is adapted to transmit and receive electrical signalsusing two different communication protocols. For example, in oneembodiment, first transceiver 64 is adapted to transmit and receivewireless electrical signals using the Zigbee protocol, or the IEEE802.15.4 protocol, while the second transceiver 66 is adapted totransmit and receive wireless electrical signals using the Wi-Fiprotocol, or the IEEE 802.11 protocol. In other embodiments, firsttransceiver 64 uses the Zigbee or IEEE 802.15.4 protocol while secondtransceiver 66 is adapted to transmit and receive electrical signalsover a wire or cable connected to patient support apparatus 20. Such awire or cable may constitute a universal serial bus (USB) connection, orit may include an RS-232 or RS-485 connection, or it may include a wiredEthernet cable. In still other embodiments, still other communicationprotocols are used instead of those listed herein, whether wired orwireless, including, but not limited to, infrared communication,Bluetooth communication, and other types of communication.

Regardless of the specific communications format used, first transceiver64 is designed to communicate with one or more nearby structures, suchas, but not limited to, medical devices, sensing systems, and/or withother patient support apparatuses. First transceiver 64 therefore sendsmessages to and receives messages from medical devices equipped withtransceivers that are compatible with first transceiver 64, and/or itsends messages to and receives messages from sensing systems equippedwith compatible transceivers, and/or it sends messages to and receivesmessages from other first transceivers positioned on one or more otherpatient support apparatuses.

If communicating with another patient support apparatus, the otherpatient support apparatus need not be identical to patient supportapparatus 20, but instead merely has to be able to have the ability tosend and receive messages using the same protocol used by firsttransceiver 64. Thus, in some situations, if patient support apparatus20 is a bed, it is able to communicate via first transceiver 64 with astretcher, or with a cot, or a recliner, or some other type of patientsupport apparatus that is of a different physical type than a bed.Further, even if the other patient support apparatus is a bed, it neednot be constructed in the same manner as patient support apparatus 20.It may be a different model of bed in some cases, or it may be made by adifferent manufacturer in some cases, or it may be of the exact sametype of bed as patient support apparatus 20. The same is true if patientsupport apparatus 20 is a cot, a stretcher, a recliner, or somethingelse—the other patient support apparatuses to which it communicates viafirst transceiver 64 may be the same or a different type of patientsupport apparatus.

As noted, in some embodiments, first transceiver 64 is also configuredto communicate with one or more medical devices 110 (see, e.g. FIG. 7 or10). Such medical devices include any medical devices that are usable ina healthcare setting in a patient's room, or otherwise within a nearbyvicinity of a patient positioned on a patient support apparatus 20. Anon-exhaustive list of such potential medical devices includesventilators, vital signs monitors, respirators, infusion pumps, IVpumps, temperature sensors, and/or blood oxygen saturation monitors.When communicating with these medical devices, first transceiver 64 andits associated controller 58—which together form one mesh network node84—become part of a mesh network that includes other nodes 84. In suchcases, node 84 of support apparatus 20 is able to relay informationreceived from the medical devices 110 onto a healthcare communicationnetwork 70. This relay is able to take place via different routes.First, the relay of information may take place via a direct connectionbetween the support apparatus 20 and network 70, or this relay ofinformation may be routed through one or more other support apparatuses20 before it is delivered to network 70. These alternative routes areselected by the nodes 84 and intelligence shared between them regardingsignal strength, traffic, and/or other factors, as will be discussedmore below.

In still other embodiments, first transceiver 64 of patient supportapparatus 20 is configured to communicate with sensing systems that areused to sense one or more characteristics, features, conditions, and/orstates of the caregiver, the patient, or other personnel. For example,in one embodiment, such a sensing system includes an interface pressuresensing sheet position on top of a mattress on the patient supportapparatus 20, such as disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. patentapplication serial number PCT/US12/27402 filed Mar. 2, 2012 byapplicants Balakrishnan et al., and entitled SENSING SYSTEM FOR PATIENTSUPPORTS, the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference. In such an embodiment, first transceiver 64 is configured tocommunicate with any one or more of the sensor array 22, the controller24, the user interface 26, the sensor controller 28, and/or the tablet44 disclosed in the PCT/US12/27402 patent application. The data from theinterface pressure sensing system is forwarded via mesh network node 84of patient support apparatus 20 onto healthcare network 70, eitherdirectly from support apparatus 20, or via one or more additionalsupport apparatuses 20 or other types of intermediate mesh network nodes84. Still further, in some embodiments, the data from the interfacepressure sensing system is partially or wholly consumed by patientsupport apparatus 20, or a device positioned on patient supportapparatus 20.

In another embodiment, first transceiver 64 is configured to communicatewith a video monitoring system, such as that disclosed in commonlyassigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/242,022 filed Sep. 23, 2011by applicants Derenne et al. and entitled VIDEO MONITORING SYSTEM, thecomplete disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.In such an embodiment, first transceiver 64 is configured to communicatewith any one or more of the cameras 22, computer devices 24, and/orimage projectors 30 disclosed in the Ser. No. 13/242,022 patentapplication. The data from the video system and/or cameras is forwardedvia mesh network node 84 of patient support apparatus 20 onto healthcarenetwork 70, either directly from support apparatus 20, or via one ormore additional support apparatuses 20 or other types of intermediatemesh network nodes 84. Still further, in some embodiments, the data fromthe video monitoring system is partially or wholly consumed by patientsupport apparatus 20, or a device positioned on patient supportapparatus 20.

In still another embodiment, first transceiver 64 is configured tocommunicate with hand washing stations, or other devices, such asdisclosed in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/570,934, filed Aug. 9, 2012, by applicants Hayes et al., and entitledPATIENT SUPPORT APPARATUS WITH IN-ROOM DEVICE COMMUNICATION, thecomplete disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.In such an embodiment, first transceiver 64 is configured to communicatewith any of the electronic tags 24 (e.g. mobile tags 24 a, stationarytags 24 b, and patient tags 24 c) and/or the transceiver 52 disclosed inthe Ser. No. 13/570,934 application. The data from the hand washingstation, or other device, is forwarded via mesh network node 84 ofpatient support apparatus 20 onto healthcare network 70, either directlyfrom support apparatus 20, or via one or more additional supportapparatuses 20 or other types of intermediate mesh network nodes 84.Still further, in some embodiments, the data from the hand washingstation is partially or wholly consumed by patient support apparatus 20,or a device positioned on patient support apparatus 20. In yet otherembodiments, the patient hand washing station is configured to be, orinclude, a mesh network node itself, in which case the hand washingstation may be the recipient of data relayed off of patient supportapparatus 20 that is destined for communication to healthcare network70.

In still other embodiments, first transceiver 64 is configured tocommunicate with any combination of the devices disclosed herein,including, but not limited to, any of those disclosed in the patentreferences incorporated herein by reference. Still further, patientsupport apparatus 20 may be modified to include a third or fourthtransceiver that, instead of, or in addition to, first transceiver 64,communicates with any of the devices disclosed herein, including, butnot limited to, any of those disclosed in the patent referencesincorporated herein by reference.

Second transceiver 66, as noted earlier, is configured to communicatewith one or more wireless access points 68 of a healthcarecommunications network 70. An example of one such communications network70 is shown in FIG. 10. Such a network is often an Ethernet network,although it may use other networking communication protocols. Thedevices, applications, and/or servers that are coupled to the network 70will vary from facility to facility because they will be dependent upona particular healthcare institution's choice of what third-partysoftware and/or systems they have installed on their network. In theillustrative embodiment shown in FIG. 10, network 70 includes aplurality of nurses stations 72, tablet and/or phones 74, computers onwheels (COW) 76, work stations 80, and one or more personal computers82. An electronic medical records (EMR) server 78 may also be included.As noted, network 70 may further include one or more additional devices,applications, and/or servers, or it may include one or fewer devices,applications, and/or servers, depending upon the particularconfiguration that has been implemented at a particular healthcarefacility. Such additional devices, applications, and/or servers mayinclude an Admission, Discharge, and Transfer (ADT) system that managesthe admission, discharge, and transfer of patients in the healthcarefacility; a workflow server that manages the work assignments ofcaregivers in the healthcare facility; and/or wireless alerting systemthat automatically forwards alarms and alerts to appropriate healthcarepersonnel via wireless communication technology. Such wirelesscommunication technology may include the forwarding of alerts via cellphones, WIFI devices, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), or byother means. Any information that is transmitted to network 70 via oneor more of the mesh network nodes 84 may therefore cause an alert to beforwarded to the appropriate caregiver(s), depending upon the contentsof such information. The nurses station 72, tablets 74, computers onwheels 76, work stations 80, personal computers 82, electronic medicalrecord systems 78, ADT systems, work flow systems, and wireless alertingsystems may all be conventional products that are commercially availablefrom one or more different suppliers, as would be known to one ofordinary skill in the art.

FIG. 3 illustrates an arbitrary example of a mesh network 86 thatcreated by a plurality of patient support apparatuses and theirrespective mesh network nodes 84. In the example shown, the mesh network86 includes four patient support apparatuses 20 that are beds (20 a, 20b, 20 c, and 20 d), one patient support apparatus 20 that is a stretcher(20 e), and one patient support apparatus 20 that is a cot (20 f). Eachpatient support apparatus 20 includes a mesh network node 84 thatcomprises first transceiver 64 and first transceiver controller 58. Eachnode 84 broadcasts signals that are responded to by all of the othernodes that are sufficiently close to receive the broadcasted signals.This broadcasting and responding enables each patient support apparatus20 to determine what other patient support apparatuses 20 are withincommunication distance. When responding to such broadcasts, a node 84also responds with information identifying what nodes 84 it itself is incommunication distance with. For example, if stretcher 20 e sends out aninitial broadcast, beds 20 a, 20 b, and 20 d, along with cot 20 f, willrespond because they are all sufficiently close to be withincommunication range of stretcher 20 e (for purposes of discussion, itwill be assumed that bed 20 c is out of direct communication range withstretcher 20 e). The response from beds 20 a, 20 b, and 20 d and cot 20f includes information indicating the nodes that each of theseapparatuses 20 are in communication with. Thus, for example, bed 20 amight respond to stretcher 20 e by indicating that it is able tocommunicate with bed 20 b, bed 20 c, cot 20 f, and bed 20 d. Similarly,bed 20 d might respond to stretcher 20 e by indicating that it is ableto communicate with beds 20 a, 20 b, and 20 c, as well as cot 20 f.Still further, in addition to forwarding information about what nodes aparticular node is currently able to communicate with, informationidentifying the relative signal strengths of each of the currentlyavailable nodes is also included. In this manner, routing of theinformation can be accomplished by selecting routes having relativelyhigher signal strengths, or at least signal strengths above apredetermined threshold, thereby ensuring that more bandwidth isavailable for transmitting information.

In some embodiments, the response back to stretcher 20 e also includesinformation indicating whether any of the nodes 84 are able tocommunicate with a wireless access point 68 of healthcare network 70.Thus, for example, bed 20 a might respond to stretcher 20 e byindicating that not only is it able to communicate with beds 20 b, 20 c,and 20 d, and cot 20 f (and also their signal strengths), but also thatbed 20 b is able to communicate directly with a wireless access point68, which, in the example of FIG. 3, is a WiFi access point, although itwill be understood by those skilled in the art that other types ofaccess points could be used. Because beds 20 c and 20 d, as well as cot20 f, are all in communication with bed 20 b, they too might all respondto stretcher 20 e with information indicating that bed 20 b is indirection communication with access point 68. Each apparatus 20 istherefore able to include in its response to stretcher 20 e anindication that it is or that it is not is direct communication with awireless access point, as well as a similar indication for all of theapparatuses it is in communication with. Depending upon the size of themesh network 86, additional levels of communication abilities may beprovided for nodes 84 that are even further downstream from stretcher 20e.

In addition to responding to stretcher 20 e's initial broadcast, eachapparatus 20 that is within communication distance may also respond withadditional information that may be useful for stretcher 20 e. As wasnoted, such additional information may include information about thesignal strength of each of the communication channels betweenapparatuses 20, and/or the signal strength between an apparatus 20 andan access point 68. Such additional information alternatively, oradditionally, includes information indicating a current level ofcommunication traffic and/or information backlog and/or availablebandwidth and/or the congestion that a node is experiencing. Stillfurther, such information includes information that uniquely identifieseach node, and/or information that uniquely identifies each patientsupport apparatus 20.

All of the information that stretcher 20 e receives in response to itsinitial broadcast message is stored in a memory accessible to firsttransceiver controller 58. This information enables controller 58 todetermine which route, or portion of a route, is the best route fortransmitting data to access point 68. That is, stretcher 20 e uses theinformation it receives from the other nodes (e.g. 84 a, 84 b, 84 d, and84 f) to select an initial recipient of any data that it needs toforward to network 70 (which would be via access point 68 in FIG. 3,although there may be multiple access points in other examples). Oncethis initial recipient is chosen, node 84 e of stretcher 20 e transmitsthe desired information to that recipient, which then forwards theinformation onto access point 68, either directly or by some otherroute, depending upon circumstances. In some embodiments, the originalsource of the transmitted information (in this example, stretcher 20 e)includes information indicating its preferred complete routing path toaccess point 68, while in other embodiments, the original source of thetransmitted information only chooses the initial recipient of thetransmitted data and leave subsequent routing decisions to thediscretion of the recipient node and any other downstream nodes thatrelay the information to access point 68.

As was noted, the choice of the initial recipient of the information ismade based upon any one or more of the items of information receivedfrom the other nodes. The choice of the initial recipient may also becombined with predefined data or programming instructions. Suchpredefined data or programming instructions may, for example, dictatethat, absent extenuating circumstances, an apparatus 20 will try tocommunicate information to access point 68 in the most direct route(i.e. the route involving the fewest number of communications hopsbetween the source of the data and network 70). Thus, as an example,stretcher 20 e may be programmed to initially select by default bed 20 bas the initial recipient of its transmitted data because bed 20 b is indirect communication with access point 68. However, such programmingcould also take into account the signal strength of the communicationpath 88 between stretcher 20 e and bed 20 b and, if it is below adesired threshold level, cause node 84 e to seek an alternate initialrecipient with which it has a communication path 88 having a strongersignal. Stretcher 20 e may therefore, as an example, determine that path88 between stretcher 20 e and bed 20 b is too weak, and therefore chooseto initially send its data to bed 20 a. This choice of bed 20 a as analternative to the default initial recipient may be based upon any ofthe information stretcher 20 e has received from the other nodes 84.Thus, the choice of bed 20 a as the alternative initial recipient of thedata from stretcher 20 e may be made, for example, because thecommunication path 88 between stretcher 20 e and bed 20 a is strongerthan any of the other communication paths stretcher 20 e has with theother patient support apparatuses 20 c, 20 d, and 20 f.

The data that is able to be transmitted from a patient support apparatus20 includes a variety of different types of data, some of which will bediscussed in greater detail below. In some embodiments, data about oneor more sensors and/or systems on the patient support apparatus 20 iscommunicated. Such data includes information indicating whether the siderails of a patient support apparatus are up or down; whether the brakeis locked or unlocked; the height of the frame 28 or patient supportdeck 30 above the base 22 (in those apparatuses where this height can bechanged by a user); the angle of one or more sections of deck support 30(such as head section 36—which may be useful to know for helping toprevent ventilator associated pneumonia and/or for other purposes); theoutput from a bed exit system that is incorporated into patient supportapparatus 20 (such as, but not limited to, the bed exit system disclosedin commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,432 issued to Travis andentitled PATIENT EXIT DETECTION MECHANISM FOR HOSPITAL BED, the completedisclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference);information indicating whether a bed exit system is armed or disarmed;the output from a patient movement detection system that is incorporatedinto patient support apparatus 20 (such as, but not limited to, thepatient movement detection system disclosed in commonly-assigned U.S.Pat. No. 6,822,571 issued to Conway and entitled PATIENT MOVEMENTDETECTION SYSTEM FOR A BED INCLUDING A LOAD CELL MOUNTING ASSEMBLY, thecomplete disclosure of which is also incorporated herein by reference);the output from a patent interface pressure detection system (such as,but not limited to, that disclosed in the PCT/US12/27402 applicationfiled Mar. 2, 2012, discussed above); data from one or more medicaldevices that are either supported on apparatus 20, or in communicationwith apparatus 20 (such as via first transceiver 64); information from avideo monitoring system (such as that disclosed in the Ser. No.13/242,022 patent application mentioned above); and information fromother devices or structures in the room that have wireless communicationabilities (such as, but not limited to, the devices disclosed in theSer. No. 13/570,934 application discussed above.

Any of the data that is transmitted from a patient support apparatus 20is data that originates from that particular patient support apparatus,or it is data that is received from another patient support apparatus 20that is to be relayed onto another node 84 or an access point 68.Regardless of whether the data that is to be transmitted originates fromthe support apparatus 20, or was received from another support apparatus20, the algorithms used for determining the next recipient of the dataare the same. Thus, for example, in the arbitrary example discussedabove with respect to FIG. 3 wherein stretcher 20 e is transmitting datathat is to be forwarded to access point 68, the logic used by stretcher20 e to determine the initial recipient of its data is the same,regardless of whether the transmitted data originated from stretcher 20e, or it was received by stretcher 20 e from another support apparatus(such as, for example, bed 20 d). Similarly, once stretcher 20 etransmits the data to an initial recipient (e.g. bed 20 a), thatrecipient utilizes the same logic and/or algorithms that stretcher 20 eused in deciding what node to forward the data to.

By forwarding information through mesh network 86 to access point 68,the information is able to avoid bottlenecks, route around weakcommunication channels, and in some cases (such as discussed below withrespect to FIG. 4) avoid areas where communication with access point 68is not possible. The routing algorithms used therefore ensure that datais efficiently, yet effectively, transferred to the healthcare network68 so that the appropriate servers and/or applications on the network 68can used the transmitted data in the desired manner.

FIG. 4 illustrates another arbitrary example wherein some of the patientsupport apparatuses 20 and associated nodes 84 are completely outsidethe communication range of access point 68. In the example of FIG. 4, aboundary line 90 indicates the furthest extent of the communicationrange of access point 68. Thus, only beds 20 b and 20 c are withincommunication range of access point 68. Any information to betransmitted from beds 20 a and 20 d, or cot 20 f and stretcher 20 e tonetwork 70 must therefore pass (in this example) through either bed 20 bor bed 20 c. By enabling patient support apparatuses 20 to communicateover, and form, a mesh network 86, the communication range of accesspoint 68 is effectively extended. That is, because those apparatuses 20within range of access point 68 (e.g. beds 20 b and 20 c) can talk toapparatuses outside of range 90 and relay information from theseapparatuses 20 to access point 68, the effective communication range ofaccess point 68 is enlarged. This allows healthcare facilities to avoidthe expensive extra infrastructure that might otherwise be necessary toprovide sufficient communication abilities throughout a facility (i.e.it may not be necessary to install as many wireless access points 68 ina given facility when the facility uses the mesh-network equippedpatient support apparatuses 20 disclosed herein).

When a patient support apparatus 20 is forwarding data to network 70 viamesh network 86 and there are multiple patient support apparatuses 20 indirect communication with one or more access points 68 (such as, forexample, the situation illustrated in FIG. 4), the choice of whichapparatus 20 to forward data to may be made in the same manner asdiscussed above. That is, in the example of FIG. 4, the choice betweenrouting data through bed 20 b or 20 c is based upon one or more of thefollowing: a default preferred path, relative signal strengths,available bandwidth, traffic congestion, communication backlogs, and/orother factors. If such factors present an equal case for routing throughbeds 20 b and 20 c, then the ultimate choice may be based on a randomselection, or some other factor.

In the examples of FIGS. 3 and 4, the data transmitted from a supportapparatus 20 to access point 68 has been ultimately transmitted toaccess point 68 via a second transceiver 66 on one of patient supportapparatuses 20. If that data has been received from another patientsupport apparatus 20 (and is thus being relayed to access point 68), thereceipt of data is via first transceiver 64. Thus, mesh networkcommunications is accomplished via first transceivers 64, whilecommunications with one or more access points 68 is via secondtransceivers 66.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that all of the firsttransceivers 64 do not have to be identical to each other. Similarly, itwill be understood by those skilled in the art that all of the secondtransceivers 66 do not have to be identical to each other. If disparatetypes of first and/or second transceivers 64 and/or 66 are incorporatedinto the support apparatuses 20 of a given mesh network 86, then thecommunication abilities of the transceivers may also be relayed to eachof the nodes and used in the algorithms for determining routing. Forexample, in some embodiments, some patient support apparatuses have asecond transceiver 66 that is able to communicate in accordance withIEEE 802.11b standards, while other patient support apparatuses 20 areable to communicate in accordance with IEEE 802.11g or 802.11nstandards, both of which are faster than 802.11b standards. Thisinformation is factored into the algorithms for choosing the mostefficient routing of data to network 70.

Mesh network 86 is also useful for disseminating data from one or moresources on healthcare network 70. When disseminating such data, the sameor similar algorithms can used for routing the data through mesh network86 to the appropriate destination. Such disseminated data includes, butis not limited to, patient information (such as, but not limited to,information that identifies a particular patient who is occupying aparticular patient support apparatus), caregiver information (such as,but not limited to, information identifying the what caregiver(s) havebeen assigned to a particular patient, room, or support apparatus 20),medical information (such as, but not limited to, information about thefall risk or a patient, information about the susceptibility of apatient to bed sores—such as a Braden scale rating, information and/orany other relevant medical information about a particular patient),commands (such as, but not limited to, commands to change the status ofa system or component on patient support apparatus 20), requests fordata, acknowledgements, and/or any other type of data that is desirablycommunicated to one or more patient support apparatuses 20, or to any ofthe devices or other structures that a patient support apparatus 20 isin communication with via one or more of its transceivers.

Each node 84 of mesh network 86 is configured to dynamically andregularly update its communication abilities and/or status so that therouting of data through mesh network 86 is dynamically adapted tochanging conditions. Such changing conditions can include, for example,the movement of one or more patient support apparatuses 20 to differentlocations, traffic congestion, the addition or deletion of one or moredata sources or destinations (e.g. one or more medical devices orsupport apparatuses 20), and/or any other conditions that might usefullyinfluence the efficient routing of data through mesh network 86.

FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate one example in which a mesh network 86dynamically updates itself when a patient support apparatus 20 exits themesh network 86. In the example of FIG. 8A, a bed 20 u is communicatingdata to a bed 20 v via two intermediate patient support apparatuses 20;namely, a bed 20 w and a stretcher 20 x. The information is beingtransmitted through nodes 84 w and 84 x of these two intermediatesupport apparatuses 20. This data path, however, may change, such as,for example, by the movement of one or both of support apparatuses 20 wand/or 20 x. In the example of FIG. 8B, stretcher 20 x has been moved toa new location that is outside of mesh network 86. In order for patientsupport apparatuses 20 u and 20 v to continue to communicate, a new datapath is automatically created by mesh network 86. In the example of FIG.8B, the new data path is from bed 20 v to bed 20 w to bed 20 y to bed 20v, and/or the reverse. By dynamically changing the routing of data whenone or more nodes 84 are either added or removed from mesh network 86,communication can still be accomplished without interruption.

Alternatively, or in addition to, the data transfer abilities of meshnetwork 86 described above, some embodiments of patient supportapparatuses 20 are configured to use mesh network 86 to determine theirlocation within a healthcare facility. This is especially useful forhealthcare facilities where some apparatuses 20 are not able todetermine their location at all times, such as, for example, duringmovement of the apparatus 20 from one location within the facility toanother location within the facility. FIG. 5 illustrates one manner inwhich mesh network 86 is used to determine the location of one or morepatient support apparatuses. Specifically, stretchers 20 g and 20 h areshown in a corridor or hallway 92 within an arbitrary portion of ahealthcare facility 98. Stretcher 20 g includes a mesh network node 84 gwhile stretcher 20 h includes a mesh network node 84 h. These nodes 84 gand 84 h are able to wirelessly communicate with other nodes 84 that arewithin a vicinity of these nodes (the size of the vicinity will dependupon the specific communication protocol and/or standards used by nodes84, as well as the communication and reception power of the electronicsin nodes 84). Nodes 84 g and 84 h (as well as, in some cases, the nodes84 on beds 20 i, 20 j, 20 k, 20 l, 20 m, and 20 n) are adapted todetermine their location by using triangulation techniques, ortrilateration techniques, or some combination of the two, with the othernodes 84 that are within communication range. Such triangulationtechniques will enable the nodes to calculate their relative position tothe other nodes that are within communication range. If one or more ofthe other nodes that are within communication range knows its absolutelocation within health care facility 98, or otherwise possessesinformation that enables its absolute location to be determined withinfacility 98, then those other nodes that know their relative location tothese nodes are able to calculate their absolute position within thefacility.

If configured to determine location based upon triangulation, each node84 g and 84 h includes one or more antennas that are adapted todetermine the direction in which signals from the other nodes 84 arereceived at nodes 84 g and 84 h, respectively. Such antennas and/orother equipment may be conventional equipment, as would be known to oneof ordinary skill in the art. If a node (e.g. 84 g and/or 84 h) receivessignals from a sufficient number of other nodes, the angular informationdetermined from those signals will be sufficient for the node (84 g or84 h) to determine its relative location to the patient supportapparatuses 20 from which it received signals. This relative positioncan be converted into an absolute position within the healthcarefacility if the absolute position of the patient support apparatusesthat transmit signals to nodes 84 g and/or 84 h are known. In someembodiments, this conversion of relative position to absolute positionis performed by one or more processors located on the patient support 20itself, while in other embodiments, it is performed by a server orapplication that is running on healthcare network 70.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of how, in one embodiment, stretcher 20 gdetermines its location using triangulation techniques. By determiningthe direction from which signals are received from nodes 84 on patientsupport apparatuses 20 i and 20 j, which are in rooms 2 and 4,respectively, node 84 g will be able to determine a first angle 94 (FIG.5). By determining the direction from which signals are received fromthe nodes 84 on patient support apparatuses 20 j and 20 m, which are inrooms 4 and 3, respectively, node 84 g will also be able to determine asecond angle 96 (FIG. 5). Further, because the locations of beds 20 i,20 j, and 20 m is already known—as determined in any conventionalmanner, at least one of which is described in greater detail below—node84 g on patient support apparatus 20 g is able to determine its absolutelocation within healthcare facility 98. The relative signal strength ofall of the received signals may also be used in determining location.

It will be further understood by those skilled in the art that thedetermination of the location of a patient support apparatus 20 (such asstretcher 20 g in FIG. 5) within a given facility 98 may be, in someembodiments, a determination of an approximate location. For example,the algorithms used to determine location may, in some embodiments,specify the location of the patient support apparatus merely to thelevel of a room or a portion of a room, or a corridor or hallway, or asection of a corridor or hallway, or some other generalized area.However, it will also be understood that finer levels of positiongranularity are determined in some embodiments.

If nodes 84 are equipped to determine location using trilateration ormultilateration techniques, either in lieu of, or in addition totriangulation techniques, nodes 84 may be configured to determine thetime it takes for signals from other nodes 84 to travel to the nodewhose destination is being determined. Such time of flight measurementsor computations can be used to determine distances between nodes 84.This will enable a node 84 to determine its relative location. Further,if some of the absolute positions of the nodes are known, the relativeposition may be converted into an absolute position within thehealthcare facility 98.

In one embodiment, some of the patient support apparatuses 20 are ableto determine their location within a healthcare facility 98 by way of alocation system that utilizes a plurality of stationary modules 100 andstationary module transceivers 102. The stationary modules 100 arepositioned on walls, ceilings, or in other fixed locations whoseabsolute positions within the healthcare facility 98 are known. Themodule transceivers 102 are incorporated into some or all of the patientsupport apparatuses 20. In the example of FIG. 2, the electrical controlsystem 44 of patient support apparatus 20 has transceivers 102 feedinginto, and controlled by, actuator/sensor controller 50. It will beunderstood by those skilled in the art that transceivers 102 may becontrolled by other controllers, and/or integrated into a patientsupport apparatus in different manners.

In one embodiment, a healthcare facility may have a plurality of patientsupport apparatuses 20 that are beds that include such transceivers 102,while other types of patient support apparatuses 20—such as stretchers,cots, and the like—might not include such module transceivers 102.Regardless of which specific patient support apparatuses 20 have moduletransceivers 102 incorporated therein, any such apparatus 20 having amodule transceiver 102 incorporated therein will be able to communicatewith a fixed module 100 when the apparatus is within a relatively closeproximity thereto. Such proximity may be on the order of five to tenfeet, or it may be other distances. In some embodiments, moduletransceiver 102 communicates with modules 100 via infrared signals,although it will be understood by those skilled in the art that othertypes of signals may be used for communication between modules 100 andtransceiver 102.

In general, because the locations of modules 100 is known, and becausethe patient support apparatuses can only communicate with a given module100 (via transceivers 102) then they are within a close proximity to thegiven module 100, the very establishment of such communication indicatesthat the patient support apparatus 20 is in close proximity to a givenmodule 100 whose location is known. This allows the location of apatient support apparatus 20 to be determined.

In one embodiment, modules 100 are configured to respond tointerrogations received from transceiver 102 with an identifier thatuniquely identifies and distinguishes that particular module 100 fromall other such modules 100 within the healthcare facility 98. Thepatient support apparatus 20 includes a map, table, or other informationthat correlates that specific module 100 to a known location, or itcommunicates with an application or server on network 70 that maintainssuch a map, table, or other information. In either case, the patientsupport apparatus is able to determine its location. Further details ofthe operation of modules 100 and transceivers 102, as well as the mannerin which they can be used to determine location, are found in commonlyassigned, copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/573,545 filedOct. 5, 2009 by applicants David Becker et al. and entitled LOCATIONDETECTION SYSTEM FOR A PATIENT HANDLING DEVICE, the complete disclosureof which is also incorporated by reference herein.

If a location system such as the one just described (i.e. having modules100 and transceivers 102) is used within a healthcare facility, it iscustomary to only position such modules 100 near locations where bedsare likely to be stationed or parked (i.e. at the location in a roomwhere the bed normally resides, or, if in a multi-bed room, at eachlocation where the bed is normally parked). Such modules 100 are nottypically placed in hallways or other locations where the beds or otherpatient support apparatuses are temporarily moved. The aforementionedtriangulation and/or trilateration techniques used with nodes 84 maytherefore be used to determine location when a patient support apparatus20 is not within an operational vicinity of a module 100. Further, theaforementioned triangulation and/or trilateration techniques may be usedwith those patient support apparatuses 20 that might not be equippedwith a location transceiver 102. Nodes 84 therefore complement existinglocation determining systems and/or fill in gaps in those existinglocation determining systems so that greater location knowledge—in termsof both coverage throughout the facility and/or in terms of the numberof patient support apparatus—is achievable within a healthcare facility.The location information determined by way of nodes 84 is stored locallyon the respective patient support apparatus 20 and/or it is forwarded tohealthcare network 70 to one or more servers and/or applications runningon the network 70. The forwarding of such information takes place usingone or more mesh networks 86 in the manners described above, or it takesplace via a direct communication with an access point 68 of network 70,or by other means.

In some embodiments, patient support apparatuses 20 that are notequipped with location transceivers 102 are, after determining their ownlocations, used to help determine the location or locations of otherpatients, or other patient support apparatuses 20 that are also notequipped with location transceivers 102, or that are equipped with suchtransceivers 102 but are currently located outside the vicinity of amodule 100. For example, if stretcher 20 g in FIG. 5 determines itslocation using its node 84 g and one of the triangulation and/ortrilateration techniques discussed above, node 84 g is configured torespond to signals from node 84 h of stretcher 20 h that are being sentby node 84 h to determine the location of stretcher 20 h. In otherwords, node 84 h of stretcher 20 h is thereafter able to measure itsangular relationship and/or its distance to stretcher 20 g whendetermining its location. Thus, once a patient support apparatus 20 usesits node 84 to determine its location, it serves as a source of locationinformation for other patient support apparatuses 20. In this way, it ispossible to extend location determination abilities farther and fartheraway from modules 100. Or, stated alternatively, the nodetriangulation/trilateration position determining system described hereinaugments any existing location system, and may be cascaded upon itselfso that patient support apparatuses that can only communicate via nodes84 with other patient support apparatus 20 that themselves are outsidethe range of modules 100 can still determine their location.

The node triangulation/trilateration position determining systemdescribed herein may also be used with a position determining systemthat is based upon WIFI signals and the known location of thecorresponding routers, access points, and/or other stationary structuresthat communicate those WIFI to and from the mobile patient supportapparatuses 20. For example, if a patient support apparatus 20 iscommunicating with a specific access point 68 via second transceiver 66,that patient support apparatus 20 may be configured to determine itsgeneral location as being within a general range of the access point 68.This general range is then further refined by way of thetriangulation/trilateration techniques described above. Further, thistriangulation/trilateration technique is able to be used to extend therange at which patient support apparatus 20 is capable of determine itslocation beyond the communication range of the access point 68. Indeed,the range may be extended—depending upon the location of patient supportapparatuses 20—to locations where there are no available access points68.

The patient support apparatus to patient support apparatus communicationthat has so far been described can be used for two separate andpotentially independent purposes. First, as was described previously,this communication may be used to create mesh networks for betterrouting of information between patient support apparatuses 20 and ahealthcare network 70. Second, as was also just described above, thispatient support apparatus to patient support apparatus communication maybe used to determine location and/or to augment or complement thelocation determining abilities of another patient support apparatuslocation determining system. As will be described below with referenceto FIG. 6, this patient support apparatus to patient support apparatuscommunication may be used for yet another purpose: transferring patientinformation between patient support apparatuses.

In lieu of, or in addition to, either of the mesh networking andposition determining functions of nodes 84, such nodes are also usefulfor storing and transferring patient information, medical information,or other information between patient support apparatuses 20. That is,nodes 84 are configured to store information about the patient that iscurrently being support on the support apparatus 20. This information isreceived via transceivers 64, or by any of the other transceiverspositioned on support apparatus 20. Further, the storage of thisinformation may be in a memory within node 84, or it may be in anotherlocation on the patient support apparatus 20. Regardless of the sourceof the information and regardless of its storage location on the patientsupport apparatus, the information includes personal information and/ormedical information about the patient being supported on apparatus 20.For example, the information may include the patient's name, height,weight, allergies, fall risk assessment, bed sore risk assessment,and/or any other medical or personal information that may be usefullystored on the support apparatus.

In some patient support apparatus embodiments, the stored information isdisplayable on an LCD screen, touchscreen, or other type of display onthe patient support apparatus so that caregivers will have visual accessto the information. The patient support apparatus 20 may also beconfigured to transmit the information locally to a pendant supported onpatient support apparatus 20, or to a medical device that is pluggedinto, or otherwise communicatively coupled, to patient support apparatus20. In such cases, the pendant and/or medical device are configured todisplay the information. In still other embodiments, the patient supportapparatus wirelessly transmits the information to a portable computerdevice, such as a laptop, smart cell phone, personal digital assistant,or other device so that the information may be displayed thereon.

Regardless of the manner in which the patient information is displayed,or is displayable, patient support apparatus 20 is configured totransfer the patient information to another patient support apparatus 20when the corresponding patient is transferred. In this way, the patientinformation follows the patient around as he or she is moved from onepatient support apparatus 20 to another within healthcare facility 98.In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, node 84 with first transceiver 64 andfirst transceiver controller 58 are used to control this transfer ofpatient information between support apparatuses 20, although it will beunderstood that any other transceivers could be used that enableinter-support apparatus communication.

In the example of FIG. 6, a bed 20 o is shown transferring patient datato a stretcher 20 p. More specifically, node 84 o of bed 20 o iswirelessly communicating patient information to node 84 p of stretcher20 p. This information transfer includes any of the informationmentioned above, or any other desirably transferred information. Suchinformation will typically be transferred when a patient (not shown) whowas previously supported on bed 20 o is transferred to stretcher 20 p.Once the patient and his or her corresponding patient information havebeen transferred to stretcher 20 p, stretcher 20 p may be transported toanother location, such as, for example, a room labeled “Room 2, Unit B”in FIG. 6. At the second location, the patient may, in some cases, betransferred to yet another patient support apparatus 20. In the exampleof FIG. 6, the patient may be transferred off of stretcher 20 p and ontoa different bed 20 q. When this patient transfer occurs, the stretcher20 p will also transfer the corresponding patient data to bed 20 q aswell. In this manner, bed 20 q will be in possession of the informationthat corresponds to the patient that has just been transferred thereto.Such apparatus-to-apparatus 20 transfers enable patient information tobe portable and to easily accompany a patient as he or she is movedthroughout a healthcare facility.

In some embodiments, the transfer of patient information from a firstpatient support apparatus 20 to a nearby second patient supportapparatus 20 is commenced in response to an authorized individual, suchas a caregiver, physically activating a data transfer mechanism on oneor both of the patient support apparatuses. The mechanism is implementedas a touchscreen in one embodiment, although it will be understood thatit may alternatively include one or more buttons, additionaltouchscreens, one or more switches, levers, or other physicalcomponents. Such mechanisms may be part of any of any of the usercontrols on patient support apparatus, or it may be positionedelsewhere. In the example of FIG. 2, patient support apparatus 20includes a first set of user controls 104 a located on a first siderail,a second set of user controls 104 b located on a second siderail, and athird set of user controls 104 c located on a footboard of patientsupport apparatus 20. The mechanism for transferring data betweensupport apparatuses 20 is positioned the third set of user controls 104c, although it could be positioned on any one or more of these usercontrols 104.

In some embodiments, the transfer of patient data is automaticallycommenced when patient support apparatus 20 senses that a patient hasexited and when another patient support apparatus 20 is detected to bewithin close communication distance (such as via a measurement of signalstrength between nodes 84). The detection of a patient exiting a supportapparatus 20 may be implemented by a conventional bed exit detectionsystem 106, such as, but not limited to, one of the type illustrated inFIG. 2, which includes a plurality of load cells 108 that feed forcedata into a scale system controller 52. The force data measurementsrepresent the forces exerted by the patient onto the patient supportdeck 30, and their absence and/or diminishment beyond a thresholdindicate that the patient is off of deck 30.

A patient support apparatus 20 may also be configured to receive patientinformation from another support apparatus 20, or from another source,upon the manipulation of one or more user controls 104, or it may takeplace automatically. When configured to take place automatically, thenode 84 of the receiving support apparatus 20 monitors its bed exitdetection system, or scale system, to determine if there have been anyrecent increases in weight (signifying the addition of a patient to apreviously unoccupied patient support deck 30). If there have, and ifnode 84 of the receiving support apparatus is detecting a nearby node 84that is transferring patient data, the node 84 of the receiving supportapparatus 20 stores the incoming patient data and accepts it ascorresponding to the recently added patient. If the receiving patientsupport apparatus has patient data stored therein from a prior patient,this may be automatically overwritten by the new data, or the old datamay be stored therein for future user or future retrieval.

A verification process is incorporated into the patient data transfersuch that a caregiver may easily determine whether the patient data hasbeen transferred correctly. In some embodiments, a graphic or textualdisplay on the receiving support apparatus 20 will display the receivedname of the patient and prompt the caregiver to confirm that thiscorresponds to the patient now positioned thereon. If it does not, thenthe support apparatus 20 discards or ignores the new patient data, orotherwise concludes that it does not correspond to the patient currentlyoccupying that patient support apparatus. Once the data has beenverified by the caregiver as having been properly transferred, thereceiving support apparatus 20 sends a signal back to the transmittingapparatus indicating it is OK to purge, overwrite, or no longer save,the patient data that it just transferred. In this way, the now emptypatient support apparatus will have its memory effectively empty so thatit is able to receive patient data corresponding to the next patient. Insome embodiments, a patient support apparatus 20 may retain the patientdata after transferring it to another support apparatus so that it maybe retrieved for potential further use.

In addition to patient data, the transferred data may also includeinformation about the usage of patient support apparatus, such as theamount of time the patient support apparatus was used by a particularpatient, and/or any other information that may be useful for billingpurposes. Still further, as will be described in greater detail below,the transferred information may include information gathered by one ormore medical devices that were used or associated with the patient,including not only medical information that may be useful for treatingor caring for the patient, but also usage information that may be usefulfor billing purposes.

The automatic transfer of information to an adjacent patient supportapparatus may also be configured to be implemented based upon an radiofrequency (RF) tag, bracelet, or other structure worn by a patient thatmay be detected automatically by one or more sensors positioned on eachof the patient support apparatuses. When a support apparatus 20 detectsa new patient has entered it via such a tag, bracelet, or other device,it requests via one or more node 84 transmissions that the adjacentpatient support apparatus transfer the corresponding patientinformation, or other information, to it.

FIG. 7 illustrates yet another use for nodes 84 in one or more patientsupport apparatuses. Specifically, FIG. 7 illustrates how nodes 84 areuseful for communicating medical information received from one or moremedical devices 110. The use of nodes 84 in patient support apparatuses20 to communicate medical information may be the sole use of nodes 84 ina given patient support apparatus, or it may be combined with any of theaforementioned use of nodes 84 in patient support apparatuses 20 (e.g.mesh network communication, location determination, and patientinformation storage and transfer).

In the arbitrary example illustrated in FIG. 7, a patient 112 is shownpositioned on a bed 20 r having associated therewith two medical devices110 a and 110 b. Medical devices 110 a and 110 b are configured tocommunicate with node 84 r of bed 20 r. Medical devices 110 a and 110 btherefore are able to transfer data gathered by the medical devices 110a and 110 b to bed 20 r, which either uses some or all of thetransferred information itself, or it forwards it on for communicationto healthcare network 70. Patient support apparatus 20 s similarly hastwo medical devices 110 associated with it—devices 110 c and 110 d—whichcommunicate information to node 84 s on bed 20 s. A third bed 20 t isshown with no medical devices associated with it, yet it may still be incommunication via its associated node 84 t with node 84 r and/or node 84s.

As was alluded to above, each patient support apparatus 20 in someembodiments includes a sensor for automatically detecting a patient IDdevice 114 that is worn, or otherwise carried with, each patient. Thepatient ID device 114 carries sufficient information for one or moresensors on patient support apparatus 20 to automatically determine theidentity of a patient positioned thereon. With this patient information,support apparatus 20 is able to associate the data received from the oneor more medical devices 110 that are communicating data to supportapparatus 20 so that the medical data is correlated to a specificpatient. The patient support apparatus 20 then forwards this medicaldata, with the corresponding patient identification, to network 70,which includes one or more applications or servers that utilize thisdata. Such servers or applications may include an electronic medicalrecords system, or other system.

When forwarding this data to network 70, the nodes 84 of the respectivesupport apparatuses 20 may forward the information thereto by firsttransmitting the information to one or more intermediate patient supportapparatuses before the data ultimately arrives at network 70. This mayinvolve routing the data through a mesh network, as describedpreviously, or it may be forwarded in other manners. As shown in FIG. 7,beds 20 s and 20 t both forward data to access point 68, and receivedata from access point 68, by routing the data through bed 20 r. Bed 20r, on the other hand, may communicate directly with access point 68 viasecond transceiver 66.

FIG. 9 illustrates an alternative electrical control system 144 that maybe used on any one or more of the patient support apparatuses 20described herein. Electrical control system 144 includes multiplecomponents that are common to electrical control system 44 describedabove (FIG. 2). Those components in common are labeled with the samereference numbers, and operate in the same manners described above.Further description of those components is therefore not provided.

Electrical control system 144 differs from the previously describedcontrol system 44 in that first and second transceivers 64 and 66,respectively, have been eliminated. A local transceiver 116 has alsobeen added, along with a local transceiver controller 118. Localtransceiver 116 is adapted to communicate with a detachable computer 120that is physically supportable on patient support apparatus 20. Morespecifically, local transceiver 116 communicates via Bluetooth, Zigbee,or any other suitable wireless protocol with a computer transceiver 122incorporated into detachable computer 120. Detachable computer 120 is aconventional a laptop, a tablet computer (such as, but not limited to,an iPad), or any other portable computer that may be removably coupledto patient support apparatus 20. The removable coupling of the computer120 to patient support apparatus 20 may involve only a physical couplingin which the computer is physically supported and/or secured to patientsupport apparatus 20, but communication takes place wirelessly.Alternatively, the coupling may involve one or more wires, such ascommunication wires, that are connected between the computer 120 andpatient support apparatus 20. In either case, the computer 120 is ableto communicate with transceiver 116 such that information may be sentfrom computer 120 to patient support apparatus 20, and/or informationmay be received from patient support apparatus 20 by computer 120. Suchinformation includes any of the information discussed above in any ofthe embodiments described herein such as, but not including, patientinformation, medical information, bed status information, relayedinformation received from other support apparatuses 20, information tobe relayed to other patient support apparatuses 20, locationinformation, etc.

The coupling of computer 120 to patient support apparatus, in someembodiments, enables the computer 120 to function as a user interface inwhich any or all functions of the patient support apparatus 20 are ableto be controlled by computer 120. In one embodiment, when computer 120is coupled to patient support apparatus 20, a touch screen on computer120 appears that includes icons and/or graphics that mimic a controlpanel already on patient support apparatus 20, or that mimics a controlpanel that is of the type that might be on patient support apparatus 20,thereby giving the caregiver the means for controlling patient supportapparatus 20 through computer 120. One example of a removable computerthat may be coupled to a patient support apparatus 20 is described ingreater detail in commonly assigned, copending U.S. provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 13/783,699, filed Mar. 4, 2013 by applicants CoryHerbst et al. and entitled PATIENT SUPPORT, the complete disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated herein by reference. Any or all of theother features described in this application may also be incorporatedinto any of the patient support apparatuses 20 described herein.

FIG. 10 illustrates an arbitrary portion of a healthcare facility 98 inwhich multiple patient support apparatuses 20 are shown incorporatingmultiple of the concepts described herein. These include the use ofnodes 84 for determining location, for creating a mesh network, fortransferring patient information, and for relaying medical deviceinformation. For example, patient support apparatus 20 c receivesinformation from medical devices D1 and D2, which it then relays ontopatient support apparatus 20 a via direct communication between nodes 84c and 84 a. When patient support apparatus 20 a receives thisinformation, it passes it onto network 70 via transceiver 66.Alternatively, if the connection between patient support apparatus 20 aand network 70 is not operable, or otherwise not suitable, patientsupport apparatus 20 a is able to relay this information to anothersupport apparatus 20 that then forwards this information to network 70.

Also shown in FIG. 10 is the transfer of patient information fromsupport apparatus 20 a to support apparatus 20 z, which then moves downone or more hallways to a different room, where it then transfers to thepatient information to support apparatus 20 b. This patient informationis transferred via nodes 84 in any of the manners described above. Whilestretcher 20 z is in transit, it may determine its location using nodes84 by any of the triangulation, trilateration, or multilaterationmethods described herein, or in other manners. Any information on any ofthe servers or applications on network 70 may also be transmitted to thedesired patient support apparatus in a reverse manner.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the use of theterm “transceiver” throughout this specification is not intended to belimited to devices in which a transmitter and receiver are necessarilywithin the same housing, or share some circuitry. Instead, the term“transceiver” is used broadly herein to refer to both structures inwhich circuitry is shared between the transmitter and receiver, andtransmitter-receivers in which the transmitter and receiver do not sharecircuitry and/or a common housing. Thus, the term “transceiver” refersto any device having a transmitter component and a receiver component,regardless of whether the two components are a common entity, separateentities, or have some overlap in their structures.

Various alterations and changes can be made to any of the foregoingembodiments without departing from the spirit and broader aspects of theinvention as defined in the appended claims, which are to be interpretedin accordance with the principles of patent law including the doctrineof equivalents. This disclosure is presented for illustrative purposesand should not be interpreted as an exhaustive description of allembodiments of the invention or to limit the scope of the claims to thespecific elements illustrated or described in connection with theseembodiments. For example, and without limitation, any individualelement(s) of the described invention may be replaced by alternativeelements that provide substantially similar functionality or otherwiseprovide adequate operation. This includes, for example, presently knownalternative elements, such as those that might be currently known to oneskilled in the art, and alternative elements that may be developed inthe future, such as those that one skilled in the art might, upondevelopment, recognize as an alternative. Further, the disclosedembodiments include a plurality of features that are described inconcert and that might cooperatively provide a collection of benefits.The present invention is not limited to only those embodiments thatinclude all of these features or that provide all of the statedbenefits, except to the extent otherwise expressly set forth in theissued claims. Any reference to claim elements in the singular, forexample, using the articles “a,” “an,” “the” or “said,” is not to beconstrued as limiting the element to the singular.

What is claimed is:
 1. A patient support apparatus comprising: a base; aframe supported by said base; a patient support deck supported by saidframe, said patient support deck adapted to provide support for apatient; a first transceiver adapted to communicate directly with anaccess point of a healthcare computer network if the patient supportapparatus is currently positioned within a first range of the accesspoint; a second transceiver adapted to communicate with a medical deviceif the medical devices is currently positioned with a second range ofthe patient support apparatus; and a controller adapted to transmit amessage to the medical device via the second transceiver when themedical device is within the second range, the message indicatingwhether the patient support apparatus is currently able to communicatedirectly with the access point using the first transceiver or not. 2.The patient support apparatus of claim 1 wherein the controller isfurther adapted to transmit to the medical device via the secondtransceiver a listing of other medical devices positioned within thesecond range of the medical device.
 3. The patient support apparatus ofclaim 2 wherein the controller is further adapted to transmit signalstrength information to the medical device indicating a signal strengthof communication between the second transceiver and the other medicaldevices positioned within the second range of the patient supportapparatus.
 4. The patient support apparatus of claim 1 wherein thecontroller is further adapted to transmit signal strength information tothe medical device via the second transceiver, the signal strengthinformation indicating a signal strength of communication between thefirst transceiver and the access point.
 5. The patient support apparatusof claim 2 wherein the controller is further adapted to transmitavailable bandwidth information to the medical device via the secondtransceiver, the available bandwidth information indicatingcommunication bandwidths between the second transceiver and each of theother medical devices positioned within the second range of the medicaldevice.
 6. The patient support apparatus of claim 2 wherein thecontroller is further adapted to transmit a current level ofcommunication traffic to the medical device via the second transceiver,the current level of communication traffic indicating a current level ofcommunication traffic between the second transceiver and each of theother medical devices positioned within the second range of the medicaldevice.
 7. The patient support apparatus of claim 1 wherein thecontroller is further adapted to communicate data generated on thepatient support apparatus to a server on the healthcare computernetwork, the controller adapted to transmit the data via the firsttransceiver if the patient support apparatus is currently positionedwithin the first range and to transmit the data via the secondtransceiver if the patient support apparatus is currently positioned outof the first range.
 8. The patient support apparatus of claim 7 wherein,if the patient support apparatus is currently positioned out of thefirst range, the controller is adapted to choose whether to transmit thedata to the medical device or another medical device positioned withinthe second range.
 9. The patient support apparatus of claim 8 whereinthe controller is adapted to choose whether to transmit the data to themedical device or the another medical device based upon how manycommunication hops lie between the medical device and the healthcarecomputer network and how many communication hops lie between the anothermedical device and the healthcare computer network.
 10. The patientsupport apparatus of claim 1 wherein said patient support apparatus isone of a bed, a stretcher, a recliner, a cot, or an operating table. 11.The patient support apparatus of claim 1 further including a thirdtransceiver adapted to communicate with a beacon positioned at a fixedand known location within a healthcare facility, the beacon adapted totransmit location information indicative of its location within thehealthcare facility, and wherein the controller is further adapted totransmit the location information received from the beacon to a secondpatient support apparatus via the second transceiver.
 12. The patientsupport apparatus of claim 11 wherein the controller is adapted totransmit the location information to the second patient supportapparatus if the second patient support apparatus does not include atransceiver adapted to communicate with the beacon, or if the secondpatient support apparatus is positioned outside a communication range ofthe beacon.
 13. A patient support apparatus system comprising: aplurality of beacons positioned at fixed and known locations within ahealthcare facility, each of the beacons adapted to transmit locationinformation indicative of their location within the healthcare facility;and a first patient support apparatus and a second patient supportapparatus, wherein the first patient support apparatus comprises: afirst patient support deck adapted to provide support for a firstpatient; a first transceiver adapted to communicate with the beacons andreceive the location information from at least one of the beacons; asecond transceiver adapted to communicate with the second patientsupport apparatus; and a third transceiver adapted to communicatedirectly with an access point of a healthcare computer network; andwherein the second patient support apparatus comprises: a second patientsupport deck adapted to provide support for a second patient; acommunication system adapted to communicate with the second transceiverof the first patient support apparatus but not with any of the pluralityof beacons, the communication system adapted to receive the locationinformation from the first patient support apparatus via the secondtransceiver and to use the location information to determine a locationof the second patient support apparatus.
 14. The patient supportapparatus system of claim 13 wherein the first patient support apparatusfurther comprises a controller adapted to communicate with a medicaldevice via the second transceiver when the medical device is positionedwithin range of the second transceiver.
 15. The patient supportapparatus system of claim 14 wherein the controller transmits thelocation information to the medical device via the second transceiver ifthe medical device does not include a transceiver adapted to communicatewith the plurality of beacons.
 16. The patient support apparatus systemof claim 13 wherein the first transceiver is an infrared transceiver.17. The patient support apparatus system of claim 13 further comprisinga third patient support apparatus and a fourth patient supportapparatus, each of the third and fourth patient support apparatusesincluding a fourth transceiver adapted to communicate with the pluralityof beacons and receive location information from the beacons, and eachof the third and fourth patient support apparatuses including a fifthtransceiver adapted to communicate the location information to thecommunication system of the second patient support apparatus whereby thesecond patient support apparatus uses the location information from thefirst, third, and fourth patient support apparatuses to determine itslocation.
 18. The patient support apparatus system of claim 13 whereinthe first patient support apparatus further comprises a controlleradapted to transmit a message to the second patient support apparatusvia the second transceiver indicating whether the first patient supportapparatus is currently able to communicate directly with the accesspoint using the third transceiver or not.
 19. The patient supportapparatus system of claim 13 wherein the first patient support apparatusfurther comprises a controller adapted to transmit to the second patientsupport apparatus a listing of medical devices currently withincommunication range of the second transceiver of the first patientsupport apparatus.
 20. The patient support apparatus system of claim 19wherein the controller of the first patient support apparatus is furtheradapted to transmit signal strength information to the second patientsupport apparatus, the signal strength information indicating a signalstrength of communication between the second transceiver and the medicaldevices identified in the listing of medical devices.